Golf is not a sport!

[Leafar the Lost]

I want to start a debate over whether or not Golf should be considered a sport like Football, Baseball, Basketball, or any other real sport. My point is that when a man who is obese and alcoholic can be considered a professional golfer, then it isn't a sport. Your thoughts?

 

[Fallen Angel]

Is Darts a sport? How about Pool or Snooker?

To me they're sport's. Some sports require different skills. You don't need to be physically fit to say , "Yes this is a Sport".

 

[Comic Book Guy]

what is it then?

 

[DarthSkywalker]

I want to start a debate over whether or not Golf should be considered a sport like Football, Baseball, Basketball, or any other real sport. My point is that when a man who is obese and alcoholic can be considered a professional golfer, then it isn't a sport. Your thoughts?

Have you watched baseball?

 

[Soapy]

Have you watched baseball?

Have you?

 

[Blind_Lawyer]

I want to start a debate over whether or not Golf should be considered a sport like Football, Baseball, Basketball, or any other real sport. My point is that when a man who is obese and alcoholic can be considered a professional golfer, then it isn't a sport. Your thoughts?

Is that the exception? Or the rule?

 

[Leafar the Lost]

Is Darts a sport? How about Pool or Snooker?

To me they're sport's. Some sports require different skills. You don't need to be physically fit to say , "Yes this is a Sport".

Darts, Pool, and Snooker are not sports. Yes, you must be physically fit to participate in a real sport.

 

[Leafar the Lost]

what is it then?

Its a competition, much like cards or Chutes & Ladders.

 

[Leafar the Lost]

Have you watched baseball?

Yes, it requires great physical fitness and skill.

 

[Fallen Angel]

Darts, Pool, and Snooker are not sports. Yes, you must be physically fit to participate in a real sport.

A sport is a sport. There is no "Real" sport.

Golf is played all around the world. Has governing bodies and rules. i.e it's a sport.

 

[Webfoot Hero]

Is this really a serious topic? Just because a sport's participants don't need to look chiseled and fit doesn't mean it's not a sport. Take sumo wrestling and football as examples where the participants can be big and fat and still play at a high level. A lot of slow-pitch softball players aren't in the greatest shape yet you don't mention softball as not a sport. Also, have you looked at most of today's pro golf players. Almost are in pretty good shape and the only one I can think of that had any semblance of a beer belly was John Daly, who is really not a consistent pro tour presence anymore. I'm going to finish by saying your opinion on this is just plain wrong.

 

[Majik1387]

As much as I hate golf and find it absolutely dull and boring, this is as ridiculous as when people say dancing is not a sport.

 

[zeroapoc]

It's a sport.

 

[Leafar the Lost]

Is this really a serious topic? Just because a sport's participants don't need to look chiseled and fit doesn't mean it's not a sport. Take sumo wrestling and football as examples where the participants can be big and fat and still play at a high level. A lot of slow-pitch softball players aren't in the greatest shape yet you don't mention softball as not a sport. Also, have you looked at most of today's pro golf players. Almost are in pretty good shape and the only one I can think of that had any semblance of a beer belly was John Daly, who is really not a consistent pro tour presence anymore. I'm going to finish by saying your opinion on this is just plain wrong.

My opinion is 100% correct, so its not an opinion. Sumo Wrestling are in athletic shape, because their sport requires them to be very heavy. Football players as well, especially those on defense, can actually be obese, but still are very athletic. I wouldn't put Softball players in the same league as Baseball players, but even they have to be athletic.

In Golf, a player could have a disease that is eating away the muscle in his leg, and still be considered a professional. The most physical thing a Golf player has to do is walk to the next hole. It isn't even
Competitive walking. It requires skill to hit a golf ball into a small hole, true, but it also requires skill to bowl or play poker at a professional level.
So in short, Golf, Bowling, Darts, and Poker are not sports.

 

[Majik1387]

My opinion is 100% correct,

No it's not, especially when you start going into this

In Golf, a player could have a disease that is eating away the muscle in his leg, and still be considered a professional. The most physical thing a Golf player has to do is walk to the next hole. It isn't even
Competitive walking. It requires skill to hit a golf ball into a small hole, true, but it also requires skill to bowl or play poker at a professional level.
So in short, Golf, Bowling, Darts, and Poker are not sports.

There are plenty of athletes who have amputated limbs and use prosthetic limbs to compete in their sports like track, dancing, baseball, basketball, skiing, swimming, etc.

Not sure if you just made this thread to troll, but you look very ignorant right now.

 

[Webfoot Hero]

My opinion is 100% correct, so its not an opinion. Sumo Wrestling are in athletic shape, because their sport requires them to be very heavy. Football players as well, especially those on defense, can actually be obese, but still are very athletic. I wouldn't put Softball players in the same league as Baseball players, but even they have to be athletic.

In Golf, a player could have a disease that is eating away the muscle in his leg, and still be considered a professional. The most physical thing a Golf player has to do is walk to the next hole. It isn't even
Competitive walking. It requires skill to hit a golf ball into a small hole, true, but it also requires skill to bowl or play poker at a professional level.
So in short, Golf, Bowling, Darts, and Poker are not sports.

I call BS on you stating that you opinion is 100% correct. You ask just about anyone (you excluded) if golf is a sport, and just about everyone would say it is. Seems you're not calling it (and several others) a sport because you don't understand the athletic and physical skills involved in playing it and/or just plain don't like the sport.

Also, just because someone can play a sport with a physical limitation doesn't mean that activity is no longer a sport. Look at Oscar Pistorius (prior to his murder conviction) as an example of someone with a disability thriving in a sport long known as being for able bodied athletes. Jim Abbott played in the MLB for 11 seasons with only one hand. Is Amy Purdy (Paralympian snowborder and DWTS runner-up) any less an athlete because she's missing her legs? No she's not.

I think you might want to stick with a topic you actually understand.

 

[Blind_Lawyer]

Okay, since you didn't answer my question, I'll continue.

You seem to be implying that there is One (1) person who is an overweight alcoholic, ergo golf is not a sport. That...is beyond asinine, dude.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

Have you?

Yes. I watched David Wells win World Series.

 

[Fallen Angel]

Leafer is truly lost.

 

[Lantern Venom]

I want to start a debate over whether or not Golf should be considered a sport like Football, Baseball, Basketball, or any other real sport. My point is that when a man who is obese and alcoholic can be considered a professional golfer, then it isn't a sport. Your thoughts?

I agree with your premise, but disagree with your reasoning. Your argument isn't particularly well thought-out, or you're trolling so you can start this topic. However, there is a modicum of truth in your assertion.

Is anything that's competitive automatically a sport? That's the pivotal point of any discussion about golf, bowling, darts, chess, fishing, etc. If a person thinks that employing a particular group of skills is enough to make an activity fit the definition of "sport", then those contests are sports. If you see a dichotomy between a contest and a sport, as I do, then some type of intense physical exertion is a requirement for something to fall into the sport category.

As for your assertion that an alcoholic is disqualified from being an athlete, there is a mound of evidence to the contrary. Elite athletes entering rehab for drug/alcohol addiction is as commonplace as musicians and actors dealing with substance abuse problems. I'm not defending substance abuse, but it is a sad trapping of fame.

With a few exceptions like bodybuilding, athletics are about performance, not aesthetics. There are countless examples of athletes who are unusually built for their particular sport, but their skills render this a mute point. Take it from someone who used to be a coach: an athlete's physical appearance can be very misleading in both the positive and negative senses.

 

[Iceman]

What is a sport exactly compared to just a game? I think there's something in the middle between outright games like chess and video games "e-sports" which also have official worldwide competitions and rules etc, and football, rugby, tennis etc. Golf, darts, pool are definitely in between the two and maybe the classification is to do with how much physical exertion is involved (although level of worldwide organisation is also relevant).

 

[Mechanix]

sport
noun
noun: sport; plural noun: sports

1. 1.
   an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment

Golf requires skill. Physical exertion may be pushing it a bit, but it can be argued for. Just because you may not have the skill, Leafar, does not mean it's not a sport.

 

[The Incredible Hulk]

Golf is a sport. There are no "obese" players on the PGA tour. As for being "alcoholics" those run rampant in all sports. Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, and Bobby Layne were raging alcoholics in their days, yet all sit in their respective Halls of Fame.

NASCAR on the other hand is not a sport, thats a competition.

 

[Poetic Chaos]

I would say it's a sport but I wouldn't call the competitors athletes.

 

[Iceman]

How about WWE? t: